第129話＜施設� �善要求＞.pdf

In 1959, the Wakō Association submitted a petition to the Takachiho Town Mayor requesting the abolition of the arsenic burning furnace at the Tsurukusa Mine, citing significant damage to agriculture and the environment. The petition was submitted 10 months before the contract revision deadline, but the mayor did not inform the company until two weeks after the deadline. The Wakō Association had previously agreed to cooperate with the mine's operation in 1954, but the company had not fulfilled its contractual obligations, leading to the petition. The association cited various forms of damage, including poor growth of trees and grass, failure of shiitake mushroom cultivation, death of bees, and poor growth of agricultural crops. The company claimed that the damage was not caused by the mine's operations, but the association and local residents suspected that the smoke from the mine was the cause. The issue was reported in local newspapers, and the town authorities conducted investigations, but the cause of the damage was not determined. The Wakō Association continued to demand that the company take responsibility for the damage and improve its operations.